Tag: posture

You see people day in and day out working hard in the gym when they could be improving at a much faster rate. This is because your body is trying to protect you, against yourself! Your poor posture is causing many aches and pains yet you don’t know it, so you don’t know to correct it. What if we trained in a way that allowed us to work on our postures and correct our muscle imbalances and tight joints so that you improve your posture? There are many things that effect posture, but in this blog, we will focus on the pelvis. The goal of this post is to increase your awareness of your pelvic alignment so you can find exercises to improve it.

In the first picture we have someone with optimal pelvic alignment. There is a neutral pelvis when there is a slight curve of the lower back and you do not experience a tight lower back and/or tight quadriceps muscles. When someone is in optimal alignment, it is likely that the rest of the body is in good shape, with little chance of injury.

In the second picture is someone in anterior pelvic tilt. This flawed position is the most common. When the body is in anterior pelvic tilt, you have someone that has tight hip flexors and spinal erectors and weak abdominals and gluteal. So to train in a way to correct the imbalances, you need to stretch the muscles that perform hip flexion such as the rectus femoris, tensor fasciae latae, and iliacus, these are muscles of the quadriceps. Along with these stretches’ you need to strengthen the abdominals, gluteal, and hamstrings.

The third picture is someone in posterior pelvic tilt. This is less common but can be more serious due to increased risk of herniating a disk. The lumbar curve in the lower back flattens out causing the upper back to round forward, which can cause cervical disc herniations as well. Just like the anterior pelvic tilt we have muscles that we need to strengthen and ones we need to stretch. For posterior pelvic tilt, we need to stretch the abdominals, gluteals, and hamstrings. We also need to strengthen the rectus femoris, tensor fasciae latea, iliacus, and spinal erectors.

So whether you are in anterior pelvic tilt or posterior pelvic tilt use your time at the gym to help correct these imbalances and not make them worse.

It seems so easy to walk out the door and get started with a light jog around the corner. But to some, running can be misunderstood and as a result runners practice poor posture which can eventually lead to joint discomfort or even an injury. Your running posture is the way you position various parts of your upper body as you run. Along with your running stride (the length and frequency of your steps), posture contributes to your overall running form. This post is a simple reminder and lesson on correct running posture.

Running Checklist

Head– Runners should want to keep their head erect while looking straight ahead with your eyes facing forward and looking 20-30 yards ahead of you. Keep your eyes on the prize! But if you’re using a rough or uneven surface, as with cross-country, trails, or sidewalks, look down periodically to see where your next step is going.

Shoulders– Keep your shoulders relaxed and straight, aligned with your body. The tendency with many is to slouch a bit or lean back, but resist that urge.

Arms- Your arms should move smoothly at your side, and NOT crossing in front of you, with your elbows bent at 90 degrees.

Torso- With your head looking forward and your shoulders low and relaxed, your torso and back naturally straighten to allow you to run in an efficient, upright position.

Hips– Your hips are the center of gravity. They should be in a neutral position, and it’s best to avoid letting them lean forward or backward.

Feet- To run well and efficiently, runners need to push off the ground with maximum force every stride. With each step, your foot should hit the ground lightly, landing on the mid-foot region and rolling off the front of the foot. Your heel should still touch the ground briefly. However, it should not carry a large weight load. Most of your weight should be directly above your mid-foot.

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